Moisture responsive devices of the type under consideration are well known in the art and a large number of patents have issued on various forms. Basically, most of these presently available devices utilize a fairly large rectangular or square or even circular shaped pad arranged to be positioned beneath a patient. This pad normally includes two distinct circuits made up of wires or even printed conductive paths sandwiched together in such a manner that wetting of the pad by a patient bridges adjacent portions of the circuits together. An appropriate electrical trigger circuit connects to the two paths and the change in resistance resulting from the presence of moisture causes the circuit to trigger an appropriate alarm.
Notwithstanding the large amount of prior art and technical information available relating to devices of the foregoing type, there are still disadvantages in their use and thus room for improvement. More particularly, as described the devices generally comprise a relatively large pad and where a wire mesh or physical wires themselves are employed for the conductive circuits within the pad, the pad itself can become bulky and of appreciable thickness. Thus, the same is not always comfortable when disposed beneath a patient. Moreover, the relatively large areas of such pads makes it difficult to clean the same.
Another problem involved is that of the various alarms used to signal the fact that a patient needs attention. Some of these alarms take the form of bells or buzzers while others may constitute lights which are readily visible. As a result, while a patient may be given relatively quick attention after an accidental uncontrolled wetting, other patients in the area and even other doctors and nurses other than his own personal nurse and physician are made cognizant of the fact that he has wet his bed by means of the signalling device. This attention can cause considerable embarrassment to the patient himself.